


Kiss Me and I'm Helpless

by Wheezefeeds



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Fluff, I needed them for the story, M/M, also there are ocs but they don't matter much, based on that video from 2014, first kiss au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-15
Updated: 2017-03-15
Packaged: 2018-10-05 15:35:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10311431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wheezefeeds/pseuds/Wheezefeeds
Summary: Ryan agrees to be part of a social experiment and kiss a stranger, and he wonders who that stranger might turn out to be.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Why did I decide to write this? Who knows.  
> The video it's based on is so old, but I watched it again and needed to write an au.  
> If you haven't ever seen it, then [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpbDHxCV29A&t=1s%20) it is. It's cute and awkward c:  
> Anyway, please enjoy this ridiculous fluff.

When Ryan had signed up and agreed to be a part of the social experiment, he hadn't exactly considered how much he would be affected by that choice if he were to actually be called upon. 

He had run into the small group of college students outside of the mall about a month ago, after he'd gone into the Gamestop there on a search for new games to play in his downtime. They'd approached him, asking if he would be against being a subject in a test they were going to perform. 

Normally, such a question would be cause for alarm, but Ryan was in a good mood after snagging two new releases, and leaving the store much faster than he'd anticipated. Instead of immediately refusing, he gave into curiosity and asked for more information. 

Apparently, if he agreed, he would be filmed meeting a random person for the first time, and then kissing them. A curious test, but he was relatively intrigued, and perpetually unattached to any significant other. With only mild concern left, he accepted the papers and a pen so he could sign up. If nothing else, it would make for a good story to tell.

The forms were mostly releases that certified he gave consent to be filmed kissing a stranger, no matter their gender, race, religion, or other characteristics, and he signed his name without much of a second though. He didn't particularly care who he kissed, considering that the most difficult part about it would be that he didn't _know_ them. Anything else wouldn't really make much of a difference.

The last paper though, asked for his name and contact information, and explained that he could be called anytime within the next two months, as a scheduled date wasn't set yet. After asking and getting confirmation that he could decline if he turned out to be too busy, Ryan signed his name on the final paper before handing the small stack to one of the students. 

They each offered a hand and he shook them politely with a smile, wishing them luck on finding others to participate. And then, Ryan left the mall with his games, and didn't give the experiment much of a second though. 

In fact, he forgot about it rather quickly, and by the time a month had come and gone, he wasn't expecting any calls at all.

~~~~~~~~~~

He paused the game he was currently playing, and stared at the number on his cell, squinting at the 'Austin, Tx' written where an actual caller ID should be. Ryan wasn't normally one to answer calls if he didn't know who was on the other end, but this one was local, and he _was_  in the middle of searching for a new job. 

So, he hit the green button and answered with a simple "Hello?"

"Hello. Is this Ryan Haywood?" the girl asked, voice sounding rather serious and inquisitive.

"It is. I'm sorry, but who is this?"

"Oh, I'm sorry! My name is Ashlee Carrning. We met about a month ago, and you agreed to be a subject for my graduate experiment, 'Strangers'?" 

Realization dawned on him then, as he remembered a day at the mall which had ended in the signing of forms and agreements to kiss someone he'd never met before. "Ah, yeah, I did, yes," he replied, shifting on his couch to lean back.

"Okay, great. Are you still willing?"

"I am," he agreed after a moment's hesitation, where he considered what exactly what he was getting into. Ryan wasn't much of a one night stand guy, so kissing strangers wasn't something he had a great deal of experience in. The idea of being filmed only made doing so all the more nerve wracking.

But, he'd already agreed, and highly doubted that there would be much harm in it. After all, it was only so a group of students could graduate. It wasn't like he would be doing anything particularly explicit. 

"So, we have a filming date and location set up now. It'll be this Saturday at two P.M.. Will you be able to attend?"

He didn't have to think too hard to come up with a response. His weekends always tended to be blissfully free. "I'll be there," he said with a small chuckle. The call sounded far too tense, and the poor girl on the other end probably didn't like talking on the phone anyway. Being nice could only improve their situation.

"That's great!" she said, tone genuinely pleased. "We'll be filming each paring individually, so you might not get on camera right at two, but we'd still like everyone to arrive then. But, if the email you gave us is still correct, then I can send the directions to the shoot and other information to you there?" 

"That'll work, thank you," Ryan hummed.

"Oh no, thank you. You're helping us out a lot by participating," said Ashlee, and then after giving their final goodbyes, she hung up. 

Ryan took a deep breath, and threw his phone down on the couch next to him as he rubbed a hand over his face. 

When he'd first signed those papers and agreed to participate, he hadn't actually given much thought to what he'd be doing. Kissing a stranger hadn't seemed like such a big deal when it was only a possibility that he would be called on, and more than a month away. But now, the time had suddenly arrived, less than a week from today.  

He spent the remainder of his evening thinking about who he might be paired up with. What they might look like, or sound like. It could be quite literally anyone, since the parameters of possible partners were broad enough to include any gender. 

It seemed like doing so would make it more difficult to find willing participants, but he supposed that such a thing might have just been a part of the experiment. After all, he hadn't exactly asked many questions about it. 

Though, Ryan thought that maybe if someone could get past the idea of kissing a stranger on camera, then nothing else would matter much enough to be a deal breaker. Not everyone was an actor with that kind of 'on film' experience that could shove the emotional aspects aside, after all.

While Ryan had done theater and been in many shows, this was different. He wouldn't be putting on a show, or becoming a whole different character. It would just be himself, kissing another genuine human. It was more personal. More real. 

At the very least, he had been given a few days to prepare for _whatever_ might happen when he got there on Saturday. And, it could turn out to be a fun experience. 

He refused to dwell on the possibility that it could turn into something horrible and awkward that he'd never want to think about again.

Determined to be positive, he returned to the previously forgotten game on his TV, and played until it was time to get ready for bed. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Ryan tapped his fingers against the steering wheel as he drove through downtown in the middle of what was remaining of lunchtime traffic. It was 1:50 on Saturday, and his fidgeting was the result of nerves that he was attempting to temper down.

He'd long ago come to terms with the fact that he would be kissing a stranger in the near future. Now, his mind was hung up on all the things that could happen afterwards. Ideas about all the ways that the situation could go wrong were running through him, as if he were some middle school kid trying to interact with his crush. 

He was an adult, damn it. 

The filming was being done in a rental studio, so the parking lot was mostly empty when he arrived, but he parked close to the cars that were already there. As far as college experiments went though, it seemed as though this group had managed to find at least a decent sized crowd of participants. 

A girl was waiting just inside, and while he didn't remember her face, Ryan did recognize her voice.

"Hello," she said. "I'm Ashlee. We probably talked on the phone earlier this week, right? Name, please?" as she spoke, she gestured to a paper on a clipboard, which likely had all the participant's names written down.

"Ryan Haywood," he hummed, hands shoved into his jeans pockets as he waited. 

She smiled and nodded as she ran a pen down the list, looking for his name. "Ah, alright." She looked up then, flashing a small, polite smile. "So, what we're doing is separating everyone into two groups, and then pulling one from each right before filming. This way, you won't have the opportunity to meet the person you're kissing until the camera is rolling." 

"A mystery until the very end," Ryan said with a small smile. 

Ashlee chuckled, nodding once again. "That's right. You'll be in group A, which is the first door if you take a left from here. You should see a sign pointing you in the right direction," she explained before holding out one hand, which Ryan politely shook. "Thank you once again for helping us out."

"Not a problem," Ryan murmured before doing as he was told, and walking down the hall. The studio seemed to be pretty open, but there were long halls, which housed a few doors each. He found the one he was looking for though, and silently walked in, taking a seat in a chair at one of the empty corners.

There were four other people in the room, three of which were female, and one other male. Ryan looked over them curiously, but didn't say anything. They were all happy to mind their own business, and it didn't take long for him to join them, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his email. 

It was about five minutes before one of them was called away, and Ryan watched the woman go before turning his attention back to the device in his hand. In ten, another person came in to wait, and then it took twenty more before it was his own name being called. 

He stood up and followed the man who'd called him back out into the hall. Their walk was filled menial greetings, and then silence until they reached a set of double doors, which opened into a large room filled with softbox lights, mics, and cameras. A completely white background was set up in the large space, and Ryan followed the directions to stand where they wanted him. His modeling career had at least given him enough experience with that.

"The camera's already rolling, so this way we'll be able to get the entirety of your meeting before the kiss, okay?" explained a man standing next to the camera. 

Ryan nodded. "Yeah, that's fine," he hummed, shuffling his feet as he stood in the same spot. So far, he was the only one here, and he couldn't help but to wonder when the person he was supposed to kiss would arrive. 

He didn't have to wait long though, because the doors on the other side of the room were pushed open, and in walked two people he hadn't seen before. a blonde girl pointed towards the set, obviously a student directing the other, but it was the man following her instructions that really caught Ryan's attention.

As he walked forward, into the shine of the bright light, Ryan noticed the red of his short curls, the brown of his eyes that hid behind glasses, and the tattoos over his arms. He wanted to smile at the realization that they were very obviously video game references. At least they would have one thing in common. He couldn't garner much else, unfortunately. The man's clothes were plain; simple jeans and a black shirt.

The stranger stopped just a couple feet short of Ryan, and he noticed their height difference as well, now that they were closer to one another. 

"Alright, take your time, guys," came a voice from behind the camera, and he simply nodded in acknowledgement, still busy glancing over the man in front of him, who was very obviously doing the same.

Eventually, a hand was stuck out over the space between them. "Michael. Nice to meet you," he chuckled. 

Ryan didn't hesitate before offering his own hand in turn. "Ryan. Pleasure's all mine," he replied with a grin and an equal laugh. 

The situation was obviously very awkward, but there wasn't much they could do about that, now that they were standing here in front of one another. It didn't feel like a bad type of awkward, though. It was more just embarrassment at the thought of kissing one another right after meeting, not disgust, or anything else negative. 

"Nice to finally see your face. I've been wondering who they'd put me up with," Michael hummed, pulling his hand back to cross his arms. Ryan could see that it wasn't a defensive stance, though, but instead simply something that the man found comfortable. 

"Ah, it doesn't disappoint too much, then?" he joked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Nope," Michael replied, popping the 'P' with a grin. "You look pretty damn kissable to me." 

Ryan ran a hand over his jaw, smiling with an embarrassed chuckle. "Nice tattoos," he said in lieu of a direct response. "Big Nintendo fan?"

Michael looked down at his own arms then, as if he had forgotten exactly what sort of art adorned them. "Oh, yeah. I guess you could say that," he laughed. "Gears of War is there too, though," he continued, moving his arm out to show that one off more clearly. 

"Now you're talking," Ryan hummed. "XBox is more my style."

Eyebrows were raised up, eyes widened slightly. "You play XBox?"

"Is that so surprising?"

A shrug. "Dunno. You just don't look the type. You've got more of a... teacher look going on."

"A teacher?" he asked, sounding slightly incredulous.

Michael waved a hand in the air dismissively. "Just something about you, Man. It's not really a bad thing, though."

"Oh, so I rock the hot teacher look?"

"I didn't say hot," was the immediate reply, but the man was smiling. 

"You said I looked kissable!"

That earned him an outright laugh, and Ryan couldn't help but to grin himself. "Yeah, I did," Michael admitted with a shake of his head. "Then we should get to that, shouldn't we?" he asked, gesturing to the camera that was still filming them. 

They had been getting along so far, but it had come to the part where things began to get awkward once again. Ryan swallowed his nerves, and took a step forward, now standing in what was very obviously Michael's personal space. 

The shorter man didn't let him waste time though, because suddenly hands were gripping at his hips and pulling him closer. Ryan's eyes widened in surprise, and he heard Michael's quiet laughter. 

"What're you laughing at?" he mumbled with a light scowl, but there was no heat behind his tone. 

"You," the man replied simply with a teasing grin. "So uh, we just, what? Go for it?" he asked, speaking louder now as he directed his question towards the college students watching them. 

"Pretty much. Just kiss," one of them replied, amusement in their tone.

"Seems self explanatory to me," Ryan murmured, feeling the need to speak quietly, since they were standing so close. The situation felt far more intimate than he'd thought it would, being surrounded by people and cameras, with a stranger pressed up against his chest. 

He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and took the opportunity to just _look_ at Michael. He could see that the other man was doing the same thing, as well. He tried to push away everything else, and just focus on what was about to happen. 

"Well, go for it then," Michael eventually said, breaking their short period of silence.

Ryan did, but moved slowly. He wrapped on hand lightly over the back of the man's neck, his fingers running through the short curls there. Michael tilted his head upwards as he leaned his down, and they met in the middle, their lips brushing against one another, but just shy of proper kissing. "Did I say that you look pretty damn kissable too?" Ryan whispered with a sly grin, although they were too close for it to be seen properly.

Michael didn't reply with words, and instead took Ryan's face between his hands and pulled him down for a firm kiss. He was too shocked for a few moments to respond, but then he began to move his lips as they both practically melted into one another, and the contact.

He didn't know how long they kissed for, but Ryan eventually pulled away with a sigh, leaving Michael with his lips parted and eyes still closed. 

He slowly blinked them open, and ran his tongue over his lips. Ryan almost leaned forward to kiss him again, but held back for the sake of the fact that they were being watched.

Instead, he began to laugh. He wasn't exactly sure what was so funny, since everything had clearly gone very well, but he couldn't stop the small fit of giggles as he stood up straight once again and leaned away from Michael.

The other man didn't seem to take offence at least, and in fact seemed to be struggling to not laugh himself. 

"Well?" Ryan asked, when he'd finally stopped chuckling, and the others were looking over the footage. His hands had somehow found their way onto the man's waist, but Michael's were just the same, so he didn't remove them.

"Well what?"

"Did my ability live up to my face?" he elaborated, raising an eyebrow.

A pause, and then a wide grin. "Uh, yeah. I think it did," he nodded. "But did _mine_?"

"Oh, I think it definitely did," Ryan hummed, biting the bottom lip of a grin. 

Silence, but then, "We should do that again sometime," Michael said, voice nonchalant and casual as he finally removed his hands and took a step back.

As Ryan smiled at the man, he knew that he absolutely agreed. 

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this, please let me know! I love seeing kudos and comments <33  
> And, if you maybe want me to continue this, or write a different pairing, let me know that as well c:  
> you can find me on tumblr here: [Double00Mogar](http://double00mogar.tumblr.com), or [Aykimra](http://aykimra.tumblr.com)  
> This fic has not been beta read, so all mistakes are my own.


End file.
